A Bump in the Road -- Watty Awards 2011 --

Chapter 19: Almost There

Relaxing as the contraction passed again, Nicole shook her head mutely eyes closed. “No, no – something is wrong Joe she’s not coming”. Her frustrated voice rose an octave and cracked as tears made fresh tracks down her face. His hands found her belly and rubbed it soothingly, taking care to avoid the bandages he’d applied over the knife wound. “What do you mean angel?” “I’m not dilating Joe. I’m having contractions every ten to fifteen minutes and my water definitely broke but nothing else is happening”.

Grateful that the roar of the blades made their conversation only audible to themselves, Joseph’s frown deepened. “You’ve got to let me check you Nicole”. “No!” came the immediate gruff reply. “Nic” he said slightly more forcefully “Come on, I’ve been basically trained as a medic, how do you think I knew how to wrap your ankle and stop the bleeding from your tummy”. Nicole felt even more blood come away from her, soaking the blankets even further despite the fact that they were new from the cargo hold and that scared the hell out of her.

She nodded and Joseph helped her lean back against the hammered aluminum lining of the chopper and slid a torn sheet under her and used the other half to wipe off the blood on her legs so he could see. He gently but firmly pried Nicole’s thighs apart, leaving her legs frogged out beside her. He looked up at Nicole from where he was kneeling between her legs. “With the next contraction I’m going to feel inside you. You’re going to have to breathe through it baby I’m sorry but it’s going to hurt”. Surprisingly, she let out a laugh –“because this has been such a luxury hotel visit so far?” she had barely gotten that sentence out when she seized up again. With one hand on her stomach,

Joseph felt the convex muscles turn concave and ripple firmly downward. His other hand gently probed somewhere in the region of her pelvic bones and felt something worrisome. In his training he had never had to deliver a baby or perform a cervical exam – it was definitely not textbook stuff. But there was something that had stuck with him said by one of his peers at the time who actually did continue on to doctor in the army. “Damn” he breathed, still inside her. Another wave of blood gushed over his hand and he wiped it off on the tattered sheet and sat back scowling a little.

“Joseph…tell… me – what is going on” she growled slowly through gritted teeth as she breathed through the next one. “Don’t shit around with it, just tell me”. His eyes flashed, “after ten hours of active labour you are only just 2 cm dilated” he broke off as he remembered something Dr. Delinsky had mentioned regarding the side effects of the insulin pill at their last appointment. “The insulin pill decreases the effectiveness of any Pitocin output, not the feeling, but the progress it brings sweetheart”.

“Well, wha-what does that mean?” she asked not waning to hear the inevitable answer. He let out a deep breath and stroked her hair, “it means my love that you’re going to have to work a lot harder than you should have to to deliver the baby”.

 Still keeping eye contact he continued. “You’re going to need to work with the contractions instead of depending solely on them to bring the baby down as they won’t be enough. As it is, it’s a distinct possibility you may not have delivered by the time we make it back to Toronto. But we have to make the contractions stronger to be brutally honest, they have to be more effective so you and the baby…I’m so sorry my love, nothing about this is the way I wanted it to go for you. And you know I would do anything, give any amount of money for you not to have to go through this”.

The pilot’s static-filled voice came over the tinny scratched speaker in the back. “We’ve reached cruising level *radio crackle* finished ascent; estimated time of travel 10 hours or arrival at 2300 hours eastern time”. Joseph’s anguished eyes bored into hers, “tell me what you need Nic”. She turned her face further into the warm and reassuring breadth of his chest “just hold me Joe; I’m so scared, I’m so scared”. He positioned himself partially behind her so that she could lean into him and he smoothed her hair back and kissed her forehead, not saying anything.